Our Practice Areas
WOOD & LONG FAMILY LAW
Practice Areas
Our attorneys focus on family law. With 24 years of combined experience, we are ready to help you with the termination of your marriage, custody or parentage matter, and issues related to support. In your initial consultation, we will work with you to develop a comprehensive case plan to address your unique goals. Our approach will be specially tailored to your needs. We won’t waste your time with a strategy that doesn’t fit.
Our attorneys have excellent reputations for diligence and competence. We bring these attributes to every aspect of your case by paying close attention to the details and making ourselves available to you, while bearing in mind the overall strategy and goals of your case.
We are ready to assist you with your family law issues, including the following below…
Divorce, Dissolution, & Legal Separation
Separating from your spouse can be a painful and difficult process. It is essential that you approach it with a solid understanding of your rights and options. Even when children are not involved or are no longer in the house, there are many decisions to be made. At the outset of your case, our attorneys will identify your objectives and work with you to create a strategy to achieve those objectives. The best resolution for ending your marriage may be through divorce, dissolution, or legal separation. And your specific needs may change throughout your case. Although our attorneys are equipped to guide you through a negotiated settlement, we are no strangers to litigation either. When things get contentious, we will advocate for your best interests with energy and attention to detail.
Child Custody & Parenting Time
If you and your spouse are separating and have children together, you will need to be thinking about how major decisions for your child will be made going forward. Who will have primary responsibility for medical decisions and care? Who will be responsible for choosing the schools they attend? How will you decide what extra-curricular activities they can be involved in? Even if you and your child’s other parent have never been married, these issues will still arise. Beyond decision-making, you and your child’s other parent will need to decide on how you will share parenting time for your child. The Columbus, Ohio office of Wood & Long, LLC has significant experience in coming to negotiated settlements to arrange for amicable ways to make decisions for your child and to arrange a mutually agreeable parenting time schedule. And when negotiations are not possible or break down, we also know how to litigate for your child’s best interest. It is imperative that you have an attorney in your corner who understands the various tools available for custody and parenting time issues and who has experience in using those tools.
Child Support
Child support is meant to provide for the standard of living for the children. In Ohio it is guided by a basic formula that is laid out in state law. There is sometimes more to consider than the basic guideline child support. Ohio law provides deviation factors that may vary the child support computation when certain circumstances exist. Our attorneys are well versed in the deviation factors and how to apply them. We also understand the difference between the judicial and administrative processes available when child support is an issue in your case. If you are looking for assistance in issues relating to child support, call our office for a consultation and we will do our best to guide you.
Spousal Support
Spousal support (formerly known as alimony) is sometimes awarded by the court pursuant to a divorce, dissolution, or legal separation. It is meant to provide for the standard of living for the payee spouse. There are a multitude of factors at play when the court determines whether to order support. And every judge and magistrate has their own policy on when spousal support is appropriate. If you are going through a divorce, dissolution, or legal separation, spousal support may be a factor in the overall outcome of your case. It is important that you have an attorney who has access to the software programs available that will help you determine the tax implications of such an award and who has knowledge of the various policies that guide each judge and magistrate in our system. If you think spousal support will be an issue in your case, our Columbus, Ohio office can help guide you through the implications, risks, and benefits inherent.
Modification or Enforcement of Existing Orders
If you already have court orders from a divorce, dissolution, legal separation, or previous custody battle and are seeking to modify or enforce those orders, our modify support custody parenting time visitationColumbus, Ohio attorneys are well-versed in post-decree issues. We know the ins-and-outs of contempt proceedings, modification or termination of support, and reallocation of custody or parenting time. If you are looking for an attorney to assist you in one of these areas, call our office at (614) 567-3031 or email one of our attorneys to set up your initial consultation.
Post-decree litigation may either be to modify prior court orders or to enforce prior court orders. Enforcement of prior orders is generally called a contempt action. Modification of prior orders may be related to financial issues or to child-related issues.
At the Columbus, Ohio office of Wood & Long, LLC, we are here to help. We are with you through every step of the way from start to finish and beyond. Sometimes it’s necessary to modify the court orders because the child(ren) have outgrown the current parenting time schedule or because incomes of the parties has changed dramatically.
Step Parent Adoption
If you are a step-parent seeking to adopt your step-child, call our Columbus, Ohio office today at (614) 567-3031 to set up your initial consultation. If you hire us, we will credit your account with the cost of your consultation.
LGBT Family Law
LGBT family law is an ever-changing landscape. This is especially true after Obergefell v. Hodges was issued by the Supreme Court in 2015. Special laws and considerations may apply to couples of the LGBT community when it comes to divorce, custody, and adoption. Although the Supreme Court has correctly ruled in favor of marriage equality, the laws on the State level have not completely caught up. The attorneys in our firm are familiar with Ohio’s laws regarding marriage termination, custody, and adoption for the LGBT community and we’re here to help. If you are facing a family law issue, don’t do it alone. Let one of our lawyers give your case the time and attention it deserves.
Contact Us
Address:
580 South High Street, Suite 230
Columbus, Ohio 43215
Hours:
8:30am - 5:00pm
*By appointment only
Phone Numbers:
TEL: 614-567-3031
FAX: 614-567-2031
Email:
info@woodlongfamilylaw.com